


When We Were Soldiers

by Royal Society of Pandas (Abarcelos)



Category: Red vs. Blue, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe - Project Freelancer, Angst, F/F, F/M, M/M, Minor Character Death, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Science Fiction, Some Humor, actually it's Very Important Side Character Death, and both main ships are of equal importance, but if you have seen it pls don't spoil people, it ain't that bad, kiribaku burning as slow as your christmas turkey, obviously, the main MAIN characters are bakugou and todoroki, the major character death is not who you think it is, tododeku established relationship, you don't need to know anything about project freelancer or rvb to read this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-27
Updated: 2018-04-27
Packaged: 2019-04-25 20:44:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14386767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Abarcelos/pseuds/Royal%20Society%20of%20Pandas
Summary: Court-martialled and on the verge of being discharged from the United Nations Space Command, Corporal Bakugou Katsuki is given a second chance: Project Freelancer, a Special Forces program, where only the best of the best were admitted to ensure the survival of humanity in a hostile galaxy.Bakugou thought it didn't sound too bad.





	When We Were Soldiers

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I'm back! With a fic no one asked for but here it is anyway!
> 
> So this is a PFL au, but you don't need to even know what PFL or Halo is to read. Just know that any animal names randomly thrown into the story are vehicles (warthog is a jeep, a pelican is a small spaceship, etc) and please don't read up on the PFL wiki if you don't want major spoilers! Also this is gonna get sad, but don't worry cause it'll take a while for it to get sad.
> 
> If you DO know what PFL is and have watched basically everything up to season 11 of Red vs Blue, please don't spoil people! The character you think is the counterpart to Carolina probably is, the one you think is york probably is, same for Wash and Maine and all that. This doesn't include the reds and blues or the Meta storyline (so yay, everyone the meta killed stays alive in the end!), it's definetly a bit different from the pfl plot in some ways.
> 
> Anyway, that's all for now! Hope you enjoy it!

**PROJECT FREELANCER AUDIO ARCHIVES_**

**TRANSCRIPTION OF LOG 03221A-G, 0907. PSYCH EVALUATION OF CORPORAL BAKUGOU KATSUKI PRIOR TO DESIGNATION AS AGENT KYOTO.**

 

 **COUNSELLOR:** Ah, Corporal, please have a seat.

 **BAKUGOU:** Thanks.

**[SOUNDS OF CHAIR MOVING]**

**COUNSELLOR:** Let us begin, Bakugou. May I call you Bakugou?

 **BAKUGOU:** Yeah, whatever… sir. Do I have to call you sir or something?

 **COUNSELLOR:** You may continue referring to me as Counsellor.

 **BAKUGOU:** Humph. Why all the secrets?

 **COUNSELLOR:** Do secrets make you uncomfortable, Bakugou?

 **BAKUGOU:** I like knowing what I’m getting into.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Well, if you get accepted into the program then I’m sure we will get to know each other very well.

 **BAKUGOU:** I fucking hope we don’t.

**[PAUSE]**

**COUNSELLOR:** So.

**[RUSTLING PAPERS.]**

**COUNSELLOR:** How are you, Bakugou?

 **BAKUGOU:** That a trick question?

 **COUNSELLOR** : Rest assured that there are no trick questions.

**[PAUSE.]**

**BAKUGOU:** I’m super.

**[WRITING.]**

**BAKUGOU:** You’re writing down an awful lot there for the two words I said.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Just my observations. Does this evaluation make you… anxious?

 **BAKUGOU:** Psychoanalyses aren’t my hobby, no.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Why do you think that is?

 **BAKUGOU:** Don’t like someone looking around inside my brain.

 **COUNSELLOR:** What if a mission required it?

 **BAKUGOU:** I said that I don’t like it, not that I won’t do it.

 **COUNSELLOR:** That is good. Why do you want to join the program, Bakugou?

 **BAKUGOU:** It’s a program for the best of the best, innit? That’s me. ‘Sides, I’ve seen the status reports from the war. We’re losing.

 **COUNSELLOR:** The UNSC’s official position-

 **BAKUGOU:** The UNSC’s official position is bullshit, isn’t it?

 **COUNSELLOR:** I would prefer to not comment on speculation.

 **BAKUGOU** : I speculate you just answered the question.

 **COUNSELLOR:** What if I told you there was a man, Bakugou? A man with an idea that could tip the balance of the war back to our side.

 **BAKUGOU:** Is that what this Project Freelancer thing is? A fucking idea?

 **COUNSELLOR:** Ensuring the survival of mankind in a harsh and hostile galaxy. Enabling our soldiers to go to greater lengths than we ever thought possible.

 **BAKUGOU:** And what do my feelings have to do with being a better soldier?

 **COUNSELLOR:** A soldier’s mind is of critical importance to project freelancer.

**[PAUSE.]**

**COUNSELLOR:** Tell me about your service record, Bakugou.

 **BAKUGOU:** You have my file, pretty sure you now more than me. Training in the Leonis Minora system until… you know what happened there. Bounced around to different systems. Patrol duties, boring shit I shouldn’t be doing.

 **COUNSELLOR:** And the alien attack on your last post?

 **BAKUGOU:** What about it?

 **COUNSELLOR:** Your file speaks of an incident. You had a… disagreement with the Staff Sergeant?

 **BAKUGOU:** He wanted to send everyone to their deaths. I disagreed.

 **COUNSELLOR:** You disobeyed orders?

 **BAKUGOU:** I saved a platoon.

 **COUNSELLOR:** You injured a commanding officer.

 **BAKUGOU:** Yeah, Command thought that was the important part of the story too.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Would you say you still harbour strong feelings of resentment about this incident?

 **BAKUGOU:** How the fuck is that not a trick question? Of course I do.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Thank you for your honesty, Bakugou.

 **BAKUGOU:** Yeah, well, I hate lying. It gets you nowhere.

 **COUNSELLOR:** That is good to hear. Now, it says on your files that there was a… _fall out_ between you and Cpl. Midoriya Izuku when you were both stationed in Sidewinder, Outpost UA-17.

 **BAKUGOU:** Goddammit, that again-

 **COUNSELLOR:** Maj. Aizawa Shota described the incident as a quote petty fight between an explosive monkey with inferiority issues as well as, impressively, an overinflated ego open parenthesis Corporal Bakugou Katsuki close parenthesis-

 **BAKUGOU:** Is he fucking-

 **COUNSELLOR: -** and a pathetically undertrained, naïve boy with the self-preservation instinct of a head of cabbage that has been out in the sun for two weeks open parenthesis Corporal Midoriya Izuku close parenthesis. Both showed to have equal amounts of redeeming qualities, said quantities being, however, dangerously close to zero. End quote.

**[PAUSE]**

**COUNSELLOR:** I am not asking you to comment on the incident, like you said, we already know everything there is to know about it. However, I would like to let you know that Cpl. Midoriya has already been accepted into the program. Would that be a problem for you?

 **BAKUGOU:** If he doesn’t get in my way, there won’t be any problem.

 **COUNSELLOR:** That is a rather unsatisfying answer.

 **BAKUGOU:** That sounds like a you problem.

 **COUNSELLOR:** You will have to work with him if accepted into the program. That, Corporal, sounds like a “ _you_ problem”.

 **BAKUGOU:** I can work with him as long as he doesn’t mess me up, okay? I’m not a fucking explosive monkey.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Very well, then.

**[RUSTLING PAPERS]**

**COUNSELLOR:** There is one more incident I would like to discuss with you. Can we talk about Tanaka Shuu?

 **BAKUGOU:** Are you shitting me?

 **COUNSELLOR:** Is there something wrong, Bakugou?

 **BAKUGOU:** How the fuck do you know that name?

 **COUNSELLOR:** His parents never pressed charges, did they?

[ **RUSTLING PAPERS]**

 **COUNSELLOR:** Tanaka Shuu was found in the boy’s restroom with major head trauma. He almost lost vision in one eye.

 **BAKUGOU:** Look-

 **COUNSELLOR:** Quote when asked about his involvement, Bakugou Katsuki said that Tanaka Shuu had a habit of hitting him when he was in the second grade two years prior. Tanaka resumed his antics in the bathroom before Bakugou defended himself. End quote. That is the official statement we have.

 **BAKUGOU:** That was a long time ago.

 **COUNSELLOR:** And yet you still have strong feelings about the memory. Would you like to talk about them?

 **BAKUGOU:** No.

 **COUNSELLOR:** It wasn’t self-defence, was it, Bakugou, what you did to Tanaka Shuu?

 **BAKUGOU:** Is that what your file says?

 **COUNSELLOR:** I only seek to help, Bakugou.

 **BAKUGOU:** I don’t fucking need help! I don’t need a shitting psychoanalysis, I don’t need a therapist! Dude was three years older than me and twice my size, his only hobby was beating me up in the school parking lot until learned how to fight. So yeah, I fucking hated him! Saw him in the bathroom one day and when he started pissing me off again I put his face through the mirror.

 **COUNSELLOR:** I’m sensing a pattern in your actions, Bakugou.

 **BAKUGOU:** No, no no no, that was a long ass time ago. It has nothing to do with what happened at my last post and nothing to do with my fight with Deku!

 **COUNSELLOR:** Deku?

 **BAKUGOU:** Argh, I just-

 **COUNSELLOR:** I believe we should drop the pretences. You did not volunteer for this project solely to help win the war. You’ve fallen out of favour with the UNSC. Courts-martial typically do not end in the kind of assignments best suited for someone of your considerable talents. You have run out of options. Already this incident with Tanaka-san has been re-added to your personnel files in light of your recent behaviour.

 **BAKUGOU:** What?

 **COUNSELLOR:** There is nothing left for you in the UNSC, Corporal.

 **BAKUGOU:** Why are you telling me this?

 **COUNSELLOR:** Do you remember the man I mentioned earlier?

 **BAKUGOU:** The one with the _ideas._

 **COUNSELLOR:** Yes. He wants to give you a second chance. To help you expunge this data from your records and serve humanity. And he is the only one willing to do so.

**[BAKUGOU LAUGHS BITTERLY]**

**BAKUGOU:** Well tell me where to fucking sign, Counsellor.

**[AUDIO REDACTED]**

**COUNSELLOR:** We will be in touch, Bakugou.

 **BAKUGOU:** Whatever.

**[BAKUGOU LEAVES THE ROOM.]**

**[A DOOR OPENS]**

**COUNSELLOR:** I am not sure he can be trusted, Director

 **DIRECTOR:** Why is that?

 **COUNSELLOR:** He disobeyed direct orders. He is violent, angry, a-

 **DIRECTOR:** And we have shown him mercy. He’ll be loyal to us for that. We’ll give him what everyone else took away.

**[PAUSE]**

**COUNSELLOR:** As you say, Director.

 **DIRECTOR:** Good. Now if you’ll come with me, we have been having problems with Alpha.

 **COUNSELLOR:** Yes, sir.

 **DIRECTOR:** And turn that damn recorder off.

**[AUDIO ENDS.]**

 

* * *

 

 

Being a soldier was a childhood dream for Katsuki, something he wanted more than anything, even if he wasn’t exactly sure why. And not just any normal soldier stuck on Earth, oh no, he wanted to be a Space Marine. He wanted to travel the galaxies, fight on the Great War, kick some alien ass.

Katsuki tried sneaking into the army once when he was fifteen, but his shitty mother caught him before he even made it to the recruitment office.

He enlisted as soon as he turned eighteen. He had never left Earth before then, and the feeling of seeing the immensity of the universe for the first time was something that he would remember for the rest of his days.

The attack on his training base was a different sort of memory he would always remember. He and fifteen or so other recruits held captive in a Covenant ship for who knows how long. The last battle of the great Col Toshinori Yagi, seven of the captured recruits KIA, a massive burn scar on Katsuki’s back… as much as he didn’t like to think about it, he often did.

 

* * *

 

 

At twenty years old, Katsuki was almost discharged from the Space Marines. Depending on the point of view, he actually was.

At twenty years old, Katsuki was admitted into Project Freelancer and it all went downhill from there.

 

* * *

 

 

“This is Four Seven Niner, requesting clearance to dock.” The guy piloting the Pelican said into the radio.

They were there.

Deep down, Katsuki wished the Pelican had windows so he could see what the mobile command centre for Project Freelancer, the Mother of Invention, looked like. People said the ship was huge, equipped with everything you needed and more. He figured, however that he would have plenty of time to see the ship from every angle, inside and out. Besides, hoping for anything other than the basics on a standard military cargo ship was unrealistic.

Inside the Pelican were only he and three other people, one of them being the pilot. The other two were also recruited into the program and apparently already friends or something. They hadn’t stopped talking the whole way there and Katsuki wanted to punch them in the face for the three hours of absolute torture he had to endure. They tried to talk to him at some point, but he just sank back in his seat and looked the other way.

The girl, whom he nicknamed Pancake Face, wasn’t as bad as the guy. She was annoying, _fuck she was annoying,_ with her high pitched voice and unwavering enthusiasm, but she didn’t talk half as much as Scar Face. Scar Face who got his name from his scar that ran from his right eyebrow to his eyelid. Scar Face who never ran out of things to fucking say and thank God they had arrived because Katsuki was about to go mad if he didn’t shut up.

Scar Face who was somewhat attractive but that was beside the point.

“ _Four Seven Niner, you are cleared for Docking Bay Six, please proceed with caution.”_ Said the static filled voice from the radio.

“Sero, you don’t need to tell me to proceed with caution every time, man, I’m on auto-dock.” Four Seven Niner replied.

“ _Nah, I don’t trust you. Try not to kill the guys in the Warthogs, they’re there to help.”_

“Thanks asshole. Four Seven Niner out.”

Radio guy snorted. “ _C’mon, you should lighten up a bit Kam-“_

Four Seven Niner turned off the radio, and soon after began docking the ship. It landed with a _thump_ and a slight jerk forward, but otherwise perfectly. Katsuki didn’t think the guy was that incompetent of a pilot.

The over-the-shoulder restraints went up automatically when the ship was safely on the ground and Katsuki was the first to stand up and make his way to the still locked exit.

“Not yet, dude.” Four Seven Niner said, coming out of the cockpit.

Katsuki turned around to get a good look at him. He was clad in full grey pilot gear, and Katsuki didn’t know what he expected. Most people walked around in their full uniform most of the time for safety reasons, helmet included. The only reason he and the other two weren’t was because they would be changing into Freelancer armour now that they were no longer under the UNSC.

“Gotta wait for the oxygen levels to stabilise,” he continued. “Should take only a couple minutes, so just gather your stuff for now, stretch a bit, contemplate your life choices, I don’t know.”

Scar Face and Pancake Face answered with an enthusiastic “Okay!”. Katsuki grunted.

Beautiful, relieving, _much appreciated_ silence fell over the ship as the three of them got their duffel bags out of the overhead bin and checked if everything was intact – meteors were no fun to navigate through and all the shaking tended to mess luggage up more often than not. Thankfully nothing of Katsuki’s was damaged.

True to his word, Four Seven Niner let them out less than five minutes later.

The docking bay was big, but pretty standard. The people sitting in the cars rushed over to them in no time, giving the pilot some papers to sign and quickly making sure the Pelican was in working condition, paying no attention to the three new additions to the program.

Some plain looking guy with medium length black hair and a toothy grin made his way to them. He was wearing a simple black uniform with “Command” written on the left chest, a tablet secured under his arm and an access card dangling around his neck.

“Sero, you piece of shit!” Four Seven Niner yelled at the guy. “You made me look bad in front of the new guys! Now they’ll think I’ve already crash-landed the Pelican!” He swiftly took off his helmet, throwing it to the nearest crew member.

Four Seven Niner was a blond, with a big nose and a stupid black streak on his hair that made him look like a human Pikachu. He was also trying his hardest to look angry but it wasn’t really working.

Command guy, who Katsuki was now calling Soy Sauce because he already didn’t remember his name that Four Seven had just shouted, grinned wider. “You have, Kaminari. Twice.”

“During training doesn’t count!”

“Whatever you say, dude. I already sent you the report for you to fill out, and the address to the bar we’re going on Saturday.”

“How much do I need to pay you to fill the report for me?”

“There is not enough money in this galaxy, let alone in your bank account.”

Four Seven Niner let out a grunt and walked over to the lift in the back. With him gone, Soy Sauce finally turned his attention to Katsuki and the other two.

“Corporal Uraraka Ochako, Corporal Kirishima Eijirou, and Corporal Bakugou Katsuki.” Soy Sauce read from his tablet.

Out of habit, Katsuki stood at attention. From the corner of his eye, he could see the others did, too.

“At ease, dudes, I’m no officer.” He chuckled. “My name is Sero Hanta, I’ll be the one you guys refer to as Command when out on missions. So, welcome to the Mother of Invention! This ship is where you’ll sleep, eat, train, receive mission briefings… pretty much everything.”

He took three key cards from his back pocket that looked very similar to his own, except instead of “Command/Full Access” they said “Freelancer Agent/Partial Access”. Katsuki could see the picture they took of him on the day of the interview affixed to his card. Soy Sauce handed the cards to their respective owners. “You’ll need these to get around, mostly around the training facilities though. They’re also the keys to your rooms.

“Speaking of which, while you guys aren’t properly added to Commands logs, you’ll need this-“ He gave each of them a small device that looked like a cell phone, “This is a way to communicate privately with Phyllis, the ship’s computer system AI, until you get your armours. She will answer all of your questions and today she’ll be your guide.”

“Aren’t you our guide?” Scar Face asked.

“Nope! Too many ships arriving today, so I have to manage that. But trust me, Phyllis is a great guide, she knows everything there is to know about the ship ‘cause she controls everything. She’s also available 24/7 and I’m not, so you can ask her for help if you get lost, if you want some extra practise in the training room, if you’re lonely and need someone to talk to, please don’t call me if you’re lonely I already have Four Seven Niner to deal with.”

Pancake Face turned her device in her hands. She pressed the button at the bottom of the screen, where the ‘home’ button would be on an actual phone, and the device lit up blue as a slightly robotic female voice began speaking, making Pancake Face jump in surprise.

 “ _Hello, and thank you for activating the Freelancer Integrated Logistics and Security System mobile device. You may call me F.I.L.S.S. Please scan your access card on this device’s screen_ ,” Said the voice.

“Yeah, just put your access card’s chip anywhere on the screen and it’ll scan,” Soy Sauce instructed, “You can all do that so F.I.L.S.S. knows who she’s talking to and then you’re all set. Use it kind of like a walkie-talkie, just press the button to speak and release when you’re done so she can respond.”

“ _Medical team inbound_ ,” The same female voice suddenly said over the room’s speakers, “ _All members of Command please get back to your posts_.”

“Well, that’s me,” Soy Sauce said, “Don’t worry too much, just make sure you ask F.I.L.S.S. about anything that confuses you and you’ll get comfortable in no time.”

“ _Sero, you still have not moved back to your post. Do you want the medical team to crash?”_

“Calm down, I’m going!” He yelled towards the ceiling, “Sorry guys, gotta go. Again, welcome on board!”

“ _Medical team being forced to crash into the Mother of Invention in approximately five minutes.”_

“Goddammit, F.I.L.S.S, I’ll be there in a second, just tell them to spin to a go-round, I know there are no injured on board!”

Soy Sauce gave them a brief head nod and took off to the lift.

Katsuki looked down at the device on his hands and pressed the “home” button. F.I.L.S.S. repeated the same message from Pancake Face’s device and the screen displayed the text “Scan Access Card”. The moment the card touched the screen, something that looked like a minimalistic eye, just two curved lines and a circle in the middle, took the place of the text.

“ _Hello, Agent Bakugou! Welcome on board of the Mother of Invention! How can I assist you today?”_

Katsuki didn’t need to think much. Next to him, the two idiots were deliberating whether they wanted to eat something first or go explore the ship, because “there was just too much to do!” Katsuki was hungry and he definitely wanted to check out the training facilities, but most of all, he was tired as fuck.

“Just take me to my room.”

“ _Wonderful! Let us head to the lift so I can take you to the men’s dorms on the sixth floor.”_

* * *

 

 

The men’s dorms were to the right exiting the lift. Katsuki counted thirteen doors on the long hallway, with a vending machine at the very end. The whole thing couldn’t be plainer – metal floors, metal walls, metal doors, a sea of grey.

“ _Your room is the first one to the left,”_ F.I.L.S.S. informed him, “ _Number 01.”_

Katsuki sighed as soon as he laid eyes on the inside of the room. Two beds. He was hoping for individual rooms, but at least it wasn’t sharing a single room with 20 people in bunk beds like in his last outpost.

His roommate had already settled in, but wasn’t there at the moment. Really, the only reasons he knew his roommate was already living there were the water bottle on the night stand and a single post it note affixed to the wall. Katsuki got closer so he could read it. It read “Gummy bears”.

The guy absolutely _had_ to be a weirdo. Fucking _great_.

He sighed. Throwing his bags on the floor, Katsuki jumped onto the bed. He figured he would unpack later, after a much needed nap. Then he could go training for a bit and grab a snack or something.

But he didn’t get to nap, because not even ten seconds after he closed his eyes someone entered the room.

“Who are you?” Asked the intruder.

Katsuki wished he hadn’t opened his eyes. He needed some kind of warning before seeing the guy’s hair, a warning which he didn’t have. His retinas were burning. He was certainly going blind.

“This is my fucking room, Half’n’half, who the fuck are _you?_ ” Katsuki asked back. He figured Half’n’half was a good nickname seeing as “Scar Face” was already taken. Also, maybe Scar Face would have been too mean.

“This is _my_ room. The Director said I wouldn’t have a roommate.”

“Well he backpedalled on that real quick, so it’s fucking our room now.” Jesus he couldn’t take this any longer, he had to- “The fuck happened to your hair?”

Half’n’half didn’t answer right away, just kept staring at Katsuki for a couple more seconds. “I like it like this.” He said. His voice was calm, deep, and as cold as space itself. Katsuki hated him.

“How the hell did you get into the military with half red, half white hair?”

“Well, obviously it wasn’t like this,” He said matter-of-factly. “Dyed it yesterday. It’s mostly naturally white so it’s not that hard.”

“Nat- Are you a fucking Final Fantasy character?”

Half’n’half once again took his time to respond. “Todoroki Shouto.”

“That ain’t a Final Fantasy character, numbnuts. I’m talking, ya know, Cloud, Noctis, Ig-“

“That’s my name, not a character. Todoroki Shouto.”

That made more sense. Katsuki still didn’t like him, but he introduced himself anyway. He wasn’t that much of an asshole. Probably. F.I.L.S.S still called him out, though.

“ _He is not only your roommate, but you two, and all the other agents, will be mission partners in the future. Do try to be somewhat friendly.”_ She said.

“How the fuck did you even hear what we were saying?” He asked.

“ _You were sitting on the ‘speak’ button on your mobile device. You should be more careful if you do not want me to hear more personal conversations.”_ Was an incredibly polite way of saying mind where you put your fat fucking ass if you don’t want the AI to listen to you being a bitch.

 

* * *

 

 

Todoroki wasn’t an awful roommate, it turned out. Most of the time they weren’t both in the room at the same time, but even when they were, Todoroki would mostly keep to himself. The majority of their conversations went the same way:

“Turn down the AC, it’s cold as shit.” Katsuki would say.

“No.” Todoroki would reply.

“I’ll fucking kill you.” Katsuki would say.

“No.” Todoroki would reply.

Katsuki begrudgingly admitted to himself that the guy at least deserved his respect. He saw him training once and… well he was really fucking good. It was infuriating. But not nearly as infuriating as Shitty Hair.

Shitty hair was the new name he gave Scar Face after he decided to fuck up his hair. There was something about no longer being in the military that made a bunch of people say “fuck it” and dye their hair the most ridiculous colours. It started with Todoroki, then a girl dyed hers green, and now Scar Face, who not only dyed his’ bright red, but also took to spiking it up since it had grown longer than military standard and he didn’t need to cut it anymore. So he became Shitty Hair.

The problem with Shitty Hair was that he liked to train at the same goddamn time as Katsuki, and he liked talking to Katsuki even though the only response he ever got was “Fuck off, Shitty Hair.” Todoroki said that he could just train at another time, but that would be admitting defeat, and Katsuki would _never_ lose anything to anyone. Not even a stupid time slot.

So now, once again, Katsuki was trying to go through target practise while that obnoxious red-headed bastard tried to make conversation. Maybe he could use Shitty Hair’s shitty face as target practise. They weren’t live rounds so it would probably be okay. He most likely wouldn’t hit him anyway, he hated sniper rifles and they hated him back.

Katsuki aimed for the target on the far left as best he could. _God, why didn’t he practise with the battle rifle today?_

Meanwhile, Shitty Hair was still babbling.

“- So Asui- ah, I mean, Tsuyu and I were discussing it, and we’re definitely getting our first assignments by the end of the month.” He said, reloading his magnum pistol.

_Ignore him. Aim lower._

“And that means we’re getting our codenames next week!”

_Ignore him. Too low._

“What do you think they’ll be? I hope it’s something cool! And manly!”

_Ignore him. A bit to the left._

“I wanna be Red Riot. You know, like the World War III hero, Crimson Riot!”

_Fucking… just shoot. Fuck it._

 

 

Missed.

“You’re really not good with that thing, are you?”

Katsuki grabbed him by the front of the shirt, bringing the asshole closer. Just enough to be within face stabbing range. He was absolutely _fuming,_ face contorted into an ugly snarl and knuckles white in the hand that was in Shitty Hair’s navy blue Project Freelancer shirt, the other hand’s fingers twitching. Shitty Hair smiled and Katsuki repressed the urge to shoot him right in the eye.

“Shut. The _fuck._ Up. For five fucking minutes Shitty Hair.” Katsuki said through gritted teeth.

“Your aim is all off,” Was Shitty Hair’s response.

Katsuki shoved him away.

“Do you wanna trade weapons?” Shitty Hair suggested.

“Hah?!” Katsuki truly prided himself on his eloquence.

“Well, uh… I was planning on practising with the magnum but if you wanna trade and I train with the rifle and uh- I don’t know, I thought maybe you’d be better off not practising with a weapon you’re not used to. You’re not a sniper so you shouldn’t worry about it, I guess.”

“What, and you are?”

“Yup!”

Katsuki huffed. He didn’t know why, maybe it was how pissed off he was at the sniper rifle or how he just really wanted to shoot something and not miss, but he accepted.

At least Shitty Hair stayed quiet for the rest of the afternoon so he could shoot shit in peace.

 

* * *

 

 

It was 6AM that Friday when F.I.L.L.S made the announcement through the intercom.

“ _All new agents please report to the Briefing Room in half an hour.”_

Her voice reverberated around the small room, bouncing off the metal walls and taking Katsuki’s mind out of his book. From the corner of his eye he could see Todoroki was already up and making a beeline to the bathroom, so Katsuki took his time as he waited for Half’n’half to finish using it.

After two weeks on board of the Mother of Invention, he had finally memorised where everything was and could get to the briefing room in no time at all. And while he mostly avoided other people like the plague, Katsuki also managed to notice that most people there weren’t military like him, and Todoroki, and Shitty Hair. It was weird, really, seeing as the last time he had been so close to so many civilians had been almost three years prior.

He first noticed it when, while exploring the ship, he passed by Four Seven Niner and another pilot talking. He could see the contrast between the other pilot’s slightly hunched and relaxed posture and Four Seven’s straight back and head held high. He could be telling the other one a dick joke – which, from what Katsuki could pick up, he was – but he looked like he was ready to give a mission report to his CO.

And when Katsuki walked into the briefing room next to Todoroki, he could see how every single person there reeked of ex-space marines. Everyone waiting quietly for the announcement with knees apart and hands secured behind their backs, and Katsuki knew he would do the same.

“Great,” Todoroki whispered, “We’re the last ones here, you idiot.”

“You’re the one who took way too long in the bathroom asshole,” Katsuki whispered back, “He’s not here yet, so stop freaking out.”

Todoroki looked like he wanted to hit him, but decided against causing a scene and took his place in line. Katsuki went over to stand next to him, mumbling a quiet “asshole” as he did. Todoroki clenched his teeth. Katsuki grinned.

There were eight other people next to them, quietly looking over at the door and waiting. On the far right, the first in line, was Deku. Katsuki had successfully managed to avoid him thus far, but he guessed that wouldn’t last. He looked the same as he did back in Sidewinder, but he had gotten taller. Katsuki hated it.

Next to him was Shitty Hair, looking a lot different than he did last time he saw him. He hadn’t changed anything about his appearance, but his hair was down and put up into a ponytail, like the first day Katsuki saw him, put and his face was serious. The voice in the back of Katsuki’s head decided to say that it didn’t suit Shitty Hair, before he decided to kill that voice dead.

The last people Katsuki recognized were Pancake Face and Frog Girl, but honestly he didn’t care about them. There were two other girls and two other guys, but aside from the fact that one dude had to be almost two metres tall and built like a tank, and one chick had pink hair (another one to the list of fucking weirdos), they were so instantly forgettable that Katsuki didn’t bother.

The instant the clock turned 6:30, two men came into the room. One of them was the Counsellor, a thin and short black man in his 40s, completely bald and wearing a patient smile that Katsuki knew was fake as all shit. The Director, however, he had never met before, and he found that describing him was a difficult task at first glance, because at first there wasn’t much that stood out. He was tall, and probably used to be strong but had gained a lot of weight. His hair and beard were black, but age was catching up to him and the grey hairs were already very visible; his eyes were shielded by the thick frame glasses he wore. If he had to guess, Katsuki would say that the Director was in his early 50s, and that he definitely fought in the early years of the war.

But what bugged Katsuki was the sense of familiarity. Even though he had never met the Director, he felt like he had seen him before. Most of all, he had seen that expression before. He looked… angry. Like just looking at all those people annoyed him.

Well. Katsuki could relate, at least.

“Today is the day you begin your journey as Freelancer Agents,” Said the Director, not looking any less angry. “You are the first ten of what will be a 47-people task force comprised of only the best of the best. We will turn you into super soldiers, and you should act accordingly.

“While you are in the program, you will say goodbye to your names. The codenames given to you will be your new identities, the armour colours given to you will be you identification. If you follow our orders exactly, you will be rewarded. If not, you will be punished.

“With every completed mission, you will be awarded points. The one with the most points will be top of the leader board and be considered the leader for most missions, and the more points you have the bigger will be your perks. Low points means less missions. Do keep an eye out for your place.”

Katsuki was on edge. He already wanted that first place.

The Counsellor opened a file on his tablet, and after a few seconds of tapping on the screen, a holographic green armour with black trim appeared next to him.

“We will now assign you names and armour,” the Counsellor announced, “following the order in which you arrived here today.” Todoroki kicked Katsuki lightly in the calf. Katsuki kicked the fuckface back, because it was his fucking fault, not Katsuki’s.

“Midoriya Izuku,” Deku took a step forward. “Codename Agent Hokkaido. Your suit of armour has already been sent to your room.

“Kirishima Eijirou,” Shitty Hair took a step forward. The holographic suit of armour next to the Counsellor changed to a deep red one. “Codename Agent Nigata. Your suit of armour has already been sent to your room.”

Katsuki looked at the red armour and couldn’t help but think that it suited Shitty Hair. Then he immediately internally punched himself in the fucking face.

The armour changed to a pink suit with navy trim, as the Counsellor announced Uraraka Ochako’s codename to be Agent Nagano. Then a green armour with a darker green trim went to Asui Tsuyu, who became Agent Aichi. A light blue armour with a cobalt trim to Shoji Mezo, now Agent Miyagi. All black armour for Tokoyami Fumikage, codename Agent Wakayama. Salmon armour for Ashido Mina, who looked way to happy to get something so pink, and codename Agent Kumamoto. Yaoyorozu Momo got the red armour with light gold trim, and the codename Agent Shizuoka.

Then the air seemed to go stagnant for a moment, as the Counsellor paused. Next to him, the holographic suit had already changed to navy with a white trim, and Todoroki had taken a step forward. The Counsellor looked at Todoroki for a few seconds, before looking back down to his tablet.

“Todoroki Shouto,” He said. “Codename Agent Osaka. Your suit of armour has already been sent to your room.”

Katsuki thought it was weird, the pause, the way the Counsellor had looked at Todoroki like he pitied him or something. But he couldn’t dwell on it too much, as his name was called out soon after.

The suit turned grey, the trim a bright orange, and the Counsellor read, “Codename Agent Kyoto.”

Katsuki liked it. He liked the colours. He liked the name. Most of all he liked the sense of purpose, one he didn’t feel in all of his three years as a space marine under the UNSC. He couldn’t help but grin.

“Your suit of armour has already been sent to your room. Welcome, Agents, to Project Freelancer.”

For the first time in a damn long while, Katsuki was excited.

Next to him, Todoroki clenched his fists and took a deep breath, looking like he was about to vomit.

**Author's Note:**

> kudos and comments are very much appreciated <3


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